Palladium Equity Partners Announces Follow On Investment in Sahale Snacks

NEW YORK, Jan. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Palladium Equity Partners, LLC (together with its affiliates "Palladium"), a private equity firm based in New York, is pleased to announce today that it made a follow on investment in Sahale Snacks®, a Seattle-based producer of premium all-natural snacks.  Terms were not disclosed.  Palladium has held a significant minority stake in Sahale Snacks since 2007. 

"We are excited to extend our commitment to Sahale Snacks®, and look forward to partnering with the management team on several promising growth initiatives for 2012 and beyond," said Yue Guan, Vice President of Palladium. "Sahale's highly-differentiated offerings place it in a strong position to capture significant opportunities in the fast-growing $3.6 billion market for snack nuts and seeds. The company has more than doubled in size since our initial investment, and we expect substantially more growth as Sahale adds new products, increases distribution, and further penetrates existing sales channels."  

Sahale Snacks offers unique mixes of premium nuts and dried fruits tossed with a hint of carefully crafted spices in an easy, portable snack pack. The company uses whole ingredients, like cashews, almonds, and pecans, then combines them with naturally dried and preservative-free fruits and finish with a touch of rich flavors using spices, such as orange blossom honey, lemongrass, or pure ground Madagascar vanilla bean. 

In an effort to make Sahale Snacks more accessible to a broader base of consumers, the company achieved Certified Gluten Free status in 2011.  This allows those with gluten intolerance and Celiac disease to enjoy the product with confidence.  Recently the products and plant were also certified by KOF-K, whose emblem is the internationally recognized trademark of KOF-K Kosher Supervision, one of the foremost kosher certification agencies in the U.S.

Sahale Snacks® launched its first products in January 2004, at a small grocery store in Seattle. Today, Sahale's products can be found in over 20,000 locations nationwide across multiple channels including Starbucks, Costco, Kroger, Safeway, Whole Foods, REI and a wide range of hotels, health clubs and specialty retailers. Sahale Snacks was represented by Partnership Capital Growth, a full-service boutique investment bank that focuses exclusively on the healthy, active and sustainable living marketplace.

"We are pleased with the continued support from our partners at Palladium," said Eric Eddings, President and CEO of Sahale Snacks. "With our recent and continued investment in talent, innovation and execution, we are accelerating our internal and external go to market initiatives. This new round of investment will allow us to increase our current facility and processing capabilities, as well as capitalize on our consumer insights accelerating our investments in building the awareness and velocity of the Sahale Snacks brand." 

About Sahale Snacks, INC. (www.sahalesnacks.com)

Sahale Snacks was founded in Seattle in 2003 by Josh Schroeter and Edmond Sanctis after climbing Mt. Rainier and enduring days of uninspiring trail mix and energy bars. The two friends set out to create a natural and healthy snack that tasted great. The company follows a simple philosophy: Start with natural whole foods, add a dash of culinary magic and offer busy consumers convenient, delightful, healthy snacks. Sahale Snacks is dedicated to helping people "Snack Better™."

About Palladium Equity Partners, LLC (www.palladiumequity.com)

Palladium targets investments in business services companies, as well as in financial services, consumer/retail, food/restaurants, healthcare, industrial and media businesses.  Palladium has a focus on companies that are well-positioned to capitalize on the fast-growing U.S. Hispanic market.  The principals of Palladium have directed investments of $1.5 billion of equity in 50 portfolio companies over the last two decades.

This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of U.S. federal securities laws, which reflect Palladium's current views with respect to, among other things, general market trends and operations and financial performance (including the operations and financial performance of Sahale Snacks). These forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "outlook," "believes," "expects," "potential," "continues," "may," "will," "should," "seeks," "approximately," "predicts," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "anticipates" or the negative version of these words or other comparable words. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those indicated in these statements. In particular, statements regarding the additional investment by Palladium in Sahale Snacks described herein is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Palladium does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. 

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any interests in any investments funds or other products sponsored and/or managed by Palladium. Investors are encouraged to contact Palladium with any questions or for additional information concerning this transaction and the risks and uncertainties associated therewith.

SOURCE Palladium Equity Partners, LLC